Miniature

MINIATURE. The word " miniature," derived from the Latin minium, red lead, has been technically employed, in the first instance, to
describe a picture in an ancient or medieval manuscript; the simple decoration of the early codices having been " miniated " or delineated with that pigment.
The generally small scale of the medieval pictures has led secondly to a pseudo-etymological confusion of the term with " minuteness " and to its application to
" paintings in little "; it is now used mainly in this sense, and is ordinarily applied to a painting on a very small scale, usually a portrait, and by analogy
to anything on a very small scale.

i. Miniatures in Ancient and Medieval MSS. The part played by the miniature in the scheme of the ornamentation of MSS., in the early centuries of the
Christian era and in the middle ages, is dealt with in the article on ILLUMINATED MSS. In the present article will be discussed the development and changes
which it underwent, in different ages and in different countries, both in its technical treatment and in its leading characteristics. The subject divides itself
into two distinct portions, the classical and the medieval, between which there lies the great separating space of the early middle ages, which affords but
scanty material to connect them. When, however, we have advanced into the middle ages, we are no longer at a loss; and we can follow the later development of
the miniature through all its changes in the various schools of western Europe down to its transition into the modern picture.

The importance of the study of the miniature has perhaps hardly received in the past the recognition which it merits. The history of painting cannot be
perfectly understood without a knowledge of the rise and progress of the art of miniaturepainting in MSS; and examples of the art still survive in an abundance
which frescoes and paintings in the large cannot rival. Modern methods of photography have brought within the reach of the student material which in earlier
generations was not accessible; and consequently a juster conception can be formed of the position which the miniature holds in the history of art than was
possible before.

The earliest examples that have descended to us are closely connected in style and treatment with the pictorial art of the later Roman classical period. In
fact they are separated from that period by only two or three centuries, and they still follow its traditions. The oldest specimens of all are the series of
coloured drawings or miniatures cut from an illustrated MS.

of the Iliad and now in the Ambrosian Library at Milan, which there is good reason for placing as early as the 3rd century. In these pictures there is a
considerable variety in the quality of the drawing, but there are many notable instances of fine figure-drawing, quite classical in sentiment, showing that the
earlier art still exercised its influence. Such indications, too, of landscape as are to be found are of the classical type, not conventional in the sense of
medieval conventionalism, but still attempting to follow nature, even if in an imperfect fashion; just as in the Pompeian and other frescoes of the Roman
age.

Of even greater value from an artistic point of view are the miniatures of the Vatican MS. of Virgil, known as the " Schedae Vaticanae," of the 4th century.
They are in a more perfect condition and on a larger scale than the Ambrosian fragments, and they therefore offer better opportunity for examining method and
technique. The drawing is quite classical in style, and the idea is conveyed that the miniatures are direct copies from an older series. The colours are opaque:
indeed, in all the miniatures of early MSS. the employment of body colour was universal. The method followed in placing the different scenes on the page is
highly instructive of the practice followed, as we may presume, by the artists of the earl}' centuries. It seems that the background of the scene was first
painted in full, covering the whole surface of the page; then, over this background were painted the larger figures and objects; and over these again the
smaller details in front of them were superimposed. Again, for the purpose of securing something like perspective, an arrangement of horizontal zones was
adopted, the upper ones containing figures on a smaller scale than those below.

It was reserved for the Byzantine school to break away more decidedly from the natural presentment of things and to develop convention. Yet in the best early
examples of this school the classical sentiment still lingers, as the relics of the miniatures of the Cottonian Genesis, in the British Museum, and the best of
the miniatures of the- Vienna Dioscorides testify; and in the miniatures of the later Byzantine MSS., which were copied from earlier examples, the reproduction
of the models is faithful. But on comparing the miniatures of the Byzantine school generally with their classical predecessors, one has a sense of having passed
from the open air into the cloister. Under the restraint of ecclesiastical domination Byzantine art became more and more stereotyped and conventional. The
tendency grows to paint the flesh-tints in swarthy hues, to elongate and emaciate the limbs, and to stiffen the gait. Browns, blue-greys and neutral tints are
in favour. Here we first find the technical treatment of flesh-painting which afterwards became the special practice of Italian miniaturists, namely the laying
on of the actual flesh-tints over a ground of olive, green or other dark hue. Landscape, such as it was, soon became quite conventional, setting the example for
that remarkable absence of the true representation of nature which is such a striking attribute of the miniatures of the middle ages.

And yet, while the ascetic treatment of the miniatures obtained so strongly in Byzantine art, at the same time the Oriental sense of splendour shows itself
in the brilliancy of much of the colouring and in the lavish employment of gold. In the miniatures of Byzantine MSS. are first seen those backgrounds of bright
gold which afterwards appear in such profusion in the productions of every western school of painting. . The influence of Byzantine art on that of medieval
Italy is obvious. The early mosaics in the churches of Italy, such as those at Ravenna and Venice, also afford examples of the dominating Byzantine influence.
But the early middle ages provide but few landmarks to guide the student; and it is only when he emerges into the 12th century, with its frescoes and miniatures
still bearing the impress of the Byzantine tradition, that he can be satisfied that the connexion has always existed during the intervening centuries.

When we turn to the farther-west of Europe, there also we find under the Carolingian monarchs a school of painting obviously derived from classical models,
chiefly of the Byzantine type, but whether derived directly from the East, or, what is more probable, transmitted through Italian channels, must remain
doubtful. The interest of that school for our present purpose is that it was the parent of the later miniature-painting in the countries of the West. For in the
native schools of those countries decoration only was the leading motive. In the MSS. of the Merovingian period, in the school which connected Frankland and
northern Italy, and which is known as Lombardic or Franco-Lombardic, in the MSS. of Spain, in the productions of the Celtic school of our own islands,
figure-drawing was scarcely known, and where it was practised it was of a barbarous character, serving rather as a feature of decoration than as a
representation of the human form. Hence in those native schools the miniature, in its true sense of a picture, may be regarded as non-existent.

From these native schools we exclude the Anglo-Saxon school, developed especially at Canterbury and Winchester, which probably derived its characteristic
free-hand drawing from classical Roman models, scarcely influenced by the Byzantine element. The highest qualities of the miniatures of the icth and nth
centuries of this school lie in fine outline drawing, which had a lasting influence on the English miniature of the later centuries. But the southern
Anglo-Saxon school rather stands apart from the general line of development of the western medieval miniature. How far it was affected by Continental influence
will be presently noticed.

Turning to the productions of the Carolingian school, which owed its origin to the encouragement of Charlemagne, it is seen that the miniature appears in two
forms. First, there is the truly conventional miniature following the Byzantine model, the subjects being generally the portraits of the Evangelists, or
portraits of the emperors themselves: the figures stiff and formal; the pages brilliantly and often coarsely coloured and gilded, generally set in architectural
surroundings of a fixed type, and devoid of landscape in the real sense of the word. On the other hand, there is also the miniature in which there is an attempt
at illustration, as, for example, the depicting of scenes from Bible history. Here there is more freedom; and we trace the debased classical style which copies
Roman, as distinguished from Byzantine, models. The figure-drawing is sufficiently clumsy, but the type is Roman, or debased Roman, and the costumes are clearly
derived from the same source. Here, too, there is a better attempt at landscape, which is not of the absolutely conventional deadness of the
CarolingianByzantine type. But this second style of illustrative miniature appears only occasionally. The other was the characteristic miniature of the
Carolingian school, and, accompanied as it was with profuse decoration in border and initial, it set the pattern for the later Continental schools of the
West.

The influence which the Carolingian school exercised on the miniatures of the southern Anglo-Saxon artists shows itself in the extended use of body-colour
and in the more elaborate employment of gold in the decoration. Such a MS. as the Benedictional of Aethelwold, bishop of Winchester, 963 to 984, with its series
of miniatures drawn in the native style but painted in opaque pigments, exhibits the influence of the foreign art. But the actual drawing remained essentially
national, marked by its own treatment of the human figure and by the peculiar disposition of the drapery with fluttering folds. Its fault was over-refinement,
tending to an affected exaggeration and disproportion of the limbs. With the Norman Conquest this remarkable native school passed away.

The period immediately succeeding the Carolingian school in western Europe was one of extreme decadence in the miniatures of MSS. In the loth and nth
centuries they were mere lifeless copies of earlier types. But with the awakening of art in the 12th century the decoration of MSS. received a powerful impulse.
Although the artist of the time excels in the border and the initial, still in the miniature also there is vigorous drawing, with bold sweeping lines and
careful study of the draperies. The artist now grows more practised in figuredrawing, and while there is still the tendency to repeat the same subjects in the
same conventional manner, individual effort produced in this century many miniatures of a very noble character. The Norman Conquest had brought England directly
within the fold of Continental art; and now began that grouping of the French and the English and the Flemish schools, which, fostered by growing intercourse
and moved by common impulses, resulted in the magnificent productions of the illuminators of north-western Europe from the latter part of the 12th century
onwards. But of natural landscape there is nothing, unless rocks and trees of a stereotyped character can be so regarded. Hence the background of the miniature
of the 12th and immediately succeeding centuries became the field for decoration to throw into stronger relief the figures in the scene. And thus arose the
practice of filling in the entire space with a sheet of gold, often burnished: a brilliant method of ornament which we have already seen practised in the
Byzantine school. We have also to notice the conventional treatment of the sacred figures, which continue henceforward, from a sense of veneration, to be clad
in the traditional robes of the early centuries, while the other figures of the scene wear the ordinary dress of the period.

It will be convenient, at this point, to follow the development of the miniature in the northern schools of England and France and the Low Countries,
occasionally glancing at Germany, during the next three centuries, and to leave aside for the moment consideration of the Italian school and the schools allied
therewith.

Entering the 13th century, we reach the period when the miniature may be said to justify the modern false etymology which has connected the title with
minuteness. The broad, bold style of the 12th century gives place to the precise and minute. Books in general exchanged their form from the large folio to the
octavo and smaller sizes. There was a greater demand for books; and vellum was limited in quantity and had to go further. The handwriting grew smaller and lost
the roundness of the 12th century. Contractions and abbreviations in the texts largely increased in number. Everywhere there is an effort to save space. And so
with the miniature. Figures were small, with delicate strokes in the features and with neat slim bodies and limbs. The backgrounds blaze with colour and
burnished gold; and delicate diaper patterns of alternate gold and colour abound. Frequently, and especially in English MSS., the drawings are merely tinted or
washed with transparent colours. In this century, too, the miniature invades the initial. Whereas in the earlier periods bold flowering scrolls are the fashion,
now a little scene is introduced into the blank spaces of the letter. To compare the work of the three schools, the drawing of the English miniature, at its
best, is perhaps the most graceful; the French is the neatest and the most accurate; the Flemish, including that of western Germany, is less refined and in
harder and stronger lines. As to colours, the English artist affects rather lighter tints than those of the other schools: a partiality is to be observed for
light green, for grey-blue, and for lake. The French artist loved deeper shades, especially ultramarine. The Fleming and the German painted, as a rule, in less
pure colours and inclined to heaviness. A noticeable feature in French MSS. is the red or copper-hued gold used in their illuminations, in strong contrast to
the paler metal of England and the Low Countries.

It is remarkable how the art of the miniature throughout the 13th century maintains its high quality both in drawing and colour without any very striking
change. Throughout the century the Bible and the Psalter were in favour; and naturally the same subjects and the same scenes ran through the period and were
repeated by artist after artist; and the very character of those sacred books would tend to restrain innovation. But towards the close of the period such
secular works as the romances were growing in popularity, and afforded a wider field for the invention of the illustrating artist. Therefore with the opening of
the 14th century a palpable change of style supervenes. We pass to more flowing lines; not to the bold sweeping strokes and curves of the 12th century, but to a
graceful, delicate, yielding style which produced the beautilul swaying figures of the period. In fact the miniature now begins to free itself from the role of
an integral member of the decorative scheme of illumination and to develop into the picture, depending on its own artistic merit for the position it is 'to hold
in the future. This is shown by the more prominent place that the miniature now assumes, and by its growing independence of the decorative border and initial.
But, at the same time, while the miniature of the 14th century thus strives to dissociate itself from the rest of the illuminated details of the MS., within
itself it flourishes in decoration. Besides the greater elasticity of the figuredrawing, there is a parallel development in the designs of the backgrounds. The
diapers become more elaborate and more brilliant; the beauty of the burnished gold is enhanced by the stippled patterns which are frequently worked upon it; the
gothic canopies and other architectural features which it became the practice to introduce naturally followed the development of the architecture of the period.
In a word, the great expansion of artistic sentiment in decoration of the best type, which is so prominent in the higher work of the 14th century, is equally
conspicuous in the illuminated miniature.

In the early part of the century, English drawing is very graceful, the figures bending with a waving movement which, if they were not so simple, would be an
affectation. Both in the outline specimens, washed with transparent colour, and in the fully painted examples, the best English work of this time is
unsurpassed. French art still maintains its neat precision, the colours more vivid than those of England and the faces delicately indicated without much
modelling. The productions of the Low Countries, still keeping to the heavier style of drawing, appear coarse beside the works of the other schools. Nor does
German miniature art of this period hold a high position, being generally mechanical and of a rustic character. As time advances the French miniature almost
monopolizes the field, excelling in brilliancy of colouring, but losing much of its purity of drawing although the general standard still remains high. The
English school gradually retrogrades and, owing no doubt to political causes and to the wars with France, appears to have produced no work of much value. It is
only towards the end of the century that there is a revival.

This revival, which is referred to in the article on ILLUMINATED MSS., has been attributed, with some reason, to a connexion with the flourishing school of
Prague a school which in the scheme of colouring suggests a southern influence following on the marriage of Richard II. with Anne of Bohemia in 1382. The new
style of English miniature painting is distinguished by richness of colour, and by the careful modelling of the faces, which compares favourably with the
slighter treatment by the contemporary French artists. Similar attention to the features also marks the northern Flemish or Dutch school at this period and in
the early 15th century; and it may therefore be regarded as an attribute of Germanic art as distinguished from the French style. The promise of the new
development in English miniature painting, however, was not to be fulfilled. In the first quarter of the 15th century, examples of great merit were produced,
but at a standstill in drawing and fettered by medieval convention. The native art practically came to a close about the middle of the century, just when the
better appreciation of nature was breaking down the old conventional representation of landscape in European art, and was transforming the miniature into the
modern picture. Whatever miniature painting was to be produced in England after that time was to be the work of foreign artists or of artists imitating a
foreign style. The condition of the country during the Wars of the Roses sufficiently accounts for the abandonment of art. Thus the history of the miniature in
the 15th century must 'be sought in the manuscripts of the Continental schools.

First we have to consider northern France and the Low Countries. As it passes out of the 14th and enters the 15th century, the miniature of both schools
begins to exhibit greater freedom in composition; and there is a further tendency to aim rather at general effect by the colouring than neatness in drawing.
This was encouraged by the wider field opened to the miniaturist. Books of all kinds were illustrated, and sacred books, Bibles and Psalters and liturgical
books, were no longer the chief, if not the only, MSS. which were illuminated. And yet there was one class of MSS. which came into the greatest prominence and
which was at the same time liturgical. This was the florae, or Hours of the Virgin, etc., devotional books for individual use, which were multiplied in vast
numbers and contained some of the finest work of the miniaturists. The decoration of these little volumes escaped in great measure from the conventional
restraints which their religious character might have imposed. Futhermore, the demand for illuminated MSS. had by this time established a regular trade; and
their production was not confined, as formerly, to the cloister with its narrow and limited views.

Early in the century the old conventional treatment of landscape still held its own; nor did the diapered and gilded background pass out of use. Indeed, in
some of the finest French specimens of the time the diapered patterns are more brilliant than ever. But natural scenery in the second quarter of the century
asserts itself more decidedly, although with faults in perspective. It was not until another generation had arisen that there was a true appreciation of the
horizon and of atmospheric effect.

The miniatures of the French and Flemish schools run fairly parallel for a time, but after the middle of the century national characteristics become more
marked and divergent. The French miniature began to deteriorate, though some very fine examples were produced by the more gifted artists of the school. The
figure-drawing was more careless, and the painting tended to hardness without depth, which the artist endeavoured to relieve by an excess of gilt shading. The
close of the century brought with it the end of the French miniature; for the extravagant productions of the 16th century cannot be counted as worthy of
consideration.

The French miniature went down before the Flemish school, which in the latter part of the 15th century attained to its highest excellence. The Flemish
miniature affected extreme softness and depth of colour; also an ever-increasing carefulness in the treatment of details, of the draperies, of the expression of
the features: the Flemish type of the Virgin's face, for example, with its full, high forehead, can never be mistaken. In the best Flemish miniatures of the
period the artist succeeds in presenting a wonderful softness and glow of colour; nor did the high standard cease with the 15th century, for many excellent
specimens still remain to attest the favour in which it was held for a few decades longer.

In the foregoing remarks what has been said in regard to the careful treatment of details applies still more to the miniatures executed in grisaille, in
which the absence of colour invited an even stronger accentuation of that treatment. This is perhaps most observable in the grisaille miniatures of northern
Flanders, which often suggest, particularly in the strong angular lines of the draperies, a connexion with the art of the woodengraver.

The Flemish miniature did not, however, hold the favour of western Europe without a rival. That rival had arisen in the south, and had come to perfection
concurrently with the miniature of the Low Countries in the 15th century. This was the Italian miniature; and the history of its development now claims a brief
notice. We return to the 13th century, where we suspended examination of the work of the school of the miniature painters of Italy; but we are not in a
position, from lack of material, to follow so closely the development of the Italian miniature. Yet there is enough to show that it passed through the same
stages as the miniatures of England and France and the Low Countries. Intercommunication between the countries of Europe was too well established for the case
to be otherwise. In Italian MSS. of the normal type the influence of Byzantine art is very manifest during the 13th and 14th centuries. The old system of
painting the flesh tints upon olive green or some similar pigment, which is left exposed on the lines of the features, thus obtaining a swarthy complexion,
continued to be practised in a more or less modified form into the 15th century. As a rule, the pigments used are more opaque than those employed in the
northern schools; and the artist trusted more to colour alone to obtain the desired effect than to the mixture of colour and gold which gave such brilliant
results in the diapered patterns of France. The vivid scarlet of the Italian miniaturists is peculiarly their own. The figuredrawing does not bear comparison
with the contemporary art of English and French MSS., the human form being often stunted and thick-set. In general, the Italian miniature, before its great
expansion in the 14th century, is far behind the miniatures of the north. But with the 15th century, under the influence of the Renaissance, it advanced into
the front rank. and rivalled the best work of the Flemish school. The use of thicker pigments enabled the miniaturist to obtain the hard and polished surface so
characteristic of his work, and to maintain sharpness of outline, without losing the depth and richness of colour which compare with the same qualities in the
Flemish school.

The Italian style was followed in the MSS. of Provence in the 14th and 1sth centuries. It had its effect, too, on the school of northern France, by which it
was also influenced in turn. In the MSS. of southern Germany it is also in evidence. But the principles which have been reviewed as guiding the development of
the miniature in the more important schools apply equally to all. Like the miniature of the Flemish school, the Italian miniature was still worked to some
extent with success, under special patronage, even in the 16th century; but with the rapid displacement of the manuscript by the printed book the miniaturist's
occupation was brought to a close.

FOR Authorities see under ILLUMINATED MSS. (. M. T.)

2. Miniatures as separate Small Pictures. In Europe the later development of the miniature, applied almost exclusively to portraits, is to a large extent
English, and the greater number of the chief masters in the art have been Englishmen or have lived in England. Several great portrait painters are said to have
worked occasionally in miniature, and there are paintings, small in size attributed with good reason to Holbein, Antonio Moro, John Shute, Cleef, Stretes,
Teerlinck, Zucchero, John and T. Betts, and with less probability even to Van Dyck. There is a fine signed work by Shute (see Lomazzo's Trattalo dell' arte
della piltura, trans. Heydock, 1598) in the Pierpont Morgan collection; examples by Betts at Montagu House and Madresfield Court, and portraits, by Lavina
Teerlinck in the collections of Mr George Salting and Mr J. Pierpont Morgan.

The first portrait miniaturist about whom anything definite is known was Nicholas Hilliard (c. 1547-1619), whose work partakes of the characteristics of
illuminated manuscripts. The colours are opaque; gold is used to heighten the effect; while the paintings are on card. They are often signed, and have
frequently also a Latin motto upon them. It has recently been proved that Hilliard worked for a while in France, and he is probably identical with the painter
alluded to in 1577 as " Nicholas Belliart." Nicholas Hilliard was succeeded by his son Lawrence (d. 1640), some works by whom are in the Pierpont Morgan and
Madresfield Court collections. His technique was similar to that of his father, but bolder, and his miniatures richer in colour. Isaac and Peter Oliver
succeeded Hilliard. Isaac (c. 1567-1617) is said to have been the pupil of Hilliard and Zucchero. Peter (1594-1647) was the pupil of Isaac. The two men were the
earliest to give roundness and form to the faces they painted. They signed their best works in monogram, and painted not only very small miniatures, but larger
ones measuring as much as 10 in. by 9 in. They copied for Charles I. on a small scale many of his famous pictures by the old masters. Several of these copies
are at Windsor and at Montagu House. At about the same date Gerbier, Poelemberg, Jamesone, Penelope Cleyn and her brothers, were workers in the art. John
Hoskins (d. 1664) was the master of Samuel Cooper, the greatest English miniaturist. The work of Cooper can best be studied in the collection at Ham House. He
was followed by a son of the same name, who was known to have been living in 1700, since a miniature signed by him and bearing that date is in the Pierpont
Collection 0} Mr J. Pierpont Morgan.

Morgan collection. It represents the duke of Berwick. Samuel Cooper (1609-1672) was a nephew of Hoskins. He spent much of his time in Paris and Holland, and
very little is known of his career. His work has a superb breadth and dignity, and has been well called " life-size work in little." His portraits of the men of
the Puritan epoch are remarkable for their truth to h'fe and strength of handling. He painted upon card, chicken skin and vellum, and on two occasions upon thin
pieces of mutton bone. The use of ivory was not introduced until long after his time. His work is frequently signed with his initials, generally in gold, and
very often with the addition of the date. Flatman (d. 1688); Alexander Cooper (d. 1660), who painted a series of portraits of the children of the king and queen
of Bohemia, now belonging to the German emperor, and several of whose best miniatures are in the collections of the queen of Holland and the king of Sweden;
David des Granges (1611-1675) whose work can be seen at Ham House and Windsor Castle; R. Gibson (1615-1690) ; Mrs Rosse, his daughter, who so cleverly imitated
the work of Samuel Cooper, and Charles and Mary Beale, deserve notice at this period. They are followed by such artists as Lawrence Crosse (d. 1724), Gervase
Spencer (d. 1763), Lens, Nathaniel Hone and Jeremiah Meyer, the latter two notable in connexion with the foundation of the Royal Academy. The workers in black
lead (plumbago, as it was called at that time) must not be overlooked, especially David Loggan, Faithorne, White, Forster and Faber. They drew with exquisite
detail and great effect on paper or vellum. The 18th century produced a great number of miniature painters, of whom Richard Cosway (1742-1821) is the most
famous. His works are of great beauty, and executed with a dash and brilliance which no other artist equalled. His best work was done about 1799. His portraits
are generally on ivory, although occasionally he worked on paper or vellum, and he produced a great many full-length pencil drawings on paper, in which he
slightly tinted the faces and hands, and these he called " stayned " drawings. Cosway's finest miniatures are signed on the back; there is but one genuine
signed on the face; very few bear even his initials on the front. George Engleheart (1750-1829) painted 4900 miniatures, and his work is stronger and more
impressive than that of Cosway; it is often signed "E" or " G.E." Andrew Plimer (1763-1837) was a pupil of Cosway, and both he and his brother Nathaniel
produced some lovely portraits. The brightness of the eyes, wiriness of the hair, exuberance of colour, combined with forced chiaroscuro and often very
inaccurate drawing, are characteristics of Andrew Plimer's work. John Smart (1741-181 1) was in some respects the greatest of the 18th-century miniaturists. His
work excelled in refinement, power and delicacy; its silky texture and elaborate finish, and the artist's love for a brown background, distinguish it. Other
notable painters were Ozias Humphry (1742-1810), Nixon (1741-1812), Shelley (c. 1750-1808), whose best pictures are groups of two or more persons, William Wood,
a Suffolk artist (1768-1808), Edridge (1760-1821), Sullivan, Sheriff, Crosse, Bogle, Daye. In the 19th century J. C. D. Engleheart (1784-1862), nephew of
George: Andrew Robertson (1777-1845)1 Beaumont, Behnes, Harlow, Heaphy and Mrs Mee must be mentioned. Sir Thomas Lawrence painted a few miniatures, and Raeburn
some in his early days; but the art may be said to have died out with Sir William Ross, the Chalons and Newton, although some works by Landseer in this form are
in existence, some small paintings of flowers by George Lance, and one portrait by Rossetti. Towards the end of the 19th century came a revival of miniature
painting, but without producing any masters of the ame calibre.. Alyn Williams and Lloyd amongst Englishmen, J. W. von Rehling-Quistgaard, the talented Danish
miniature painter, and Bess Norris, an Australian artist, deserve mention. From about 1650 onwards many fine miniatures were executed enamel. Petitot
(1607-1691) was the greatest worker in this naterial, and painted his finest portraits in Paris for Louis XIV.

lis son succeeded him in the same profession. Other artists enamel were Boit (d. 1727), Zincke (d. 1767), Hurter (1734- 1790), Thouron (1737-1789), Liot,
Prieur, Spicer, Dinglinger,
Vouquer, Bain and Thienpondt. Many of these artists were either Frenchmen or Swiss, but most of them visited England and worked there for a while. The greatest
English enamel portrait painter was Henry Bone (1755-1839), the finest of whose productions are now at Kingston Lacy. A great collection of his small enamel
reproductions of celebrated paintings is in Buckingham Palace.

The earliest French miniature painters were Jean Clouet (d. c. 1540), his son Francois, Jean Fouquet, Jean Perreal and others; but of their work in
portraiture we have little trace at the present day, although there are many portraits and a vast number of drawings attributed to them with more or less
reason. The seven portraits in the manuscript of the Gallic War (Bibliotheque Nationale) are assigned to the elder Clouet; and to them may be added a fine work,
in the Pierpont Morgan collection, representing the Mareschal de Brissac. Following these men we find the two Stresors, St Andre, Cotelle and Masse; the fine
draughtsmen Picart, Vauthier and Cheron; and then, later on, we know of miniatures by Largilliere, Boucher, Nattier, Montpetit, Desfosses, Drouais, Charlier,
Thouron, Perrin and Dubourg; but the greatest names are those of Hall the Swede, Dumont the Frenchman, and Fiiger the Austrian. The tiny pictures painted by the
von Blarenberghe family are by many persons grouped as miniatures, and some of the later French artists, as Prud'hon, Constance Meyer and Dubois, executed
miniature portraits, while others whose names might be mentioned were Werner (1637-1710), Rosalba (1675-1757), Chatillon, Pasquier, Marsigli, Garriot, Sicardi
and Festa. The most popular artists in France, however, were Augustin (d. 1832) and Isabey (d. 1855). Their portraits of Napoleon and his court are exceedingly
fine, and perhaps no other Frenchman painted miniatures so well as did Augustin. The Spanish painter Goya is known to have executed a few miniatures.

Miniatures are painted in oil, water-colour and enamel, but chiefly in water-colour. Many Dutch and German miniatures were painted in oil, and as a rule
these are on copper; and there are portraits in the same medium, and often on the same material, attributed to many of the great Italian artists, notably those
of the Bologna school. Samuel Cooper is said to have executed a few paintings in oil on copper, but we know little about the artists who prepared the numerous
oil portraits in foreign collections.

The work of the 18th century on ivory is, of course, in watercolour. The use of ivory came into general adoption in the early part of the reign of William
III., miniatures previous to that time having been painted on vellum, chicken-skin or cardboard, a few on the backs of playing cards, and many more on very thin
vellum closely mounted on to playing cards.

The most important collections of miniatures in England in 1907 were those in the possession of the king, the duke of Buccleuch, Mr J. Pierpont Morgan, the
duke of Rutland, the earls of Exeter, Ilchester, Dysart, Dartrey (notable for enamel work, some examples of which are of the greatest rarity) and Ancaster
(especially notable for works by Cosway), of Earl Beauchamp, the late Baroness Burdett-Coutts, Sir Gardner Engleheart (remarkable for containing almost
exclusively works by the Engleheart family), Lord Weardale, and Messrs Drake, Digby, Williams, Whitehead, and Usher of Lincoln. There is a remarkable
collection, principally of works in enamel, in the University Gallery, Oxford, a few fine miniatures at South Kensington, and in the same museum in the Jones
collection some splendid works by Petitot, and there_ are also some famous foreign portrait and picture miniatures in the Wallace Collection, Hertford House,
London. The collection at the Louvre is of importance, especially as regards the works of Petitot; that belonging to the queen of Holland of very high merit,
and includes some choice works by Holbein and Alexander Cooper; and there is also a very fine collection at Amsterdam, including some of the largest works by
Samuel Cooper and the largest known by Hoskins ; some very fine ones belong to the Crown of Sweden, ^and there is a superb but very mixed collection in Peter
the Great's Gallery in St Petersburg, unfortunately in great confusion and needing rearrangement. Many fine miniatures, including some very scarce enamel work
by Prieur, are at the Rosenborg Palace in Copenhagen; the German emperor and the Crown of Prussia both own some remarkable examples, and there are important
collections at Vienna, Florence and Stockholm, and in private hands in Berlin, Moscow and Helsingfors.